Invitational Trustee Seminar
July 27- August 1,  2008

For more than 50 years, the Aspen Institute Executive Seminar has enabled leaders in every field to transform themselves and their organizations. The newly-launched Aspen Seminar continues this tradition in an evolving world in which the diverse perspectives of different cultures must play an increasingly prominent role.

Using classical and contemporary texts and led by highly skilled moderators, participants in the Aspen Seminar come together from multiple walks of life and cultures to engage in a collaborative exploration of their selves and of our world. They reflect on their deepest values, explore personal visions of “the good society,” and apply newly gained insights to their most demanding practical challenges in a fluid global environment. 

Through discussions of classical writings by authors such as Aristotle, Plato, Confucius, the Buddha, Ibn Khaldun, Karl Marx, and Rousseau, participants examine the sources of our most fundamental attitudes and ideas about human nature and society. Through discussion of modern texts by authors such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Simone de Beauvoir, Vaclav Havel, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Wole Soyinka, participants confront the profound and interdependent issues of our own times. Through dialogue with peers, they reorient their moral and intellectual compasses and enhance their ability as leaders to enlist others in a shared mission.

Reflections by past Aspen seminar participants reveal that they consider themselves better equipped to create organizations that are both effective and supportive environments in which to work. As executives, they are better prepared to manage relationships with diverse constituencies. And as leaders, they are more confident in their ability to guide their enterprises successfully in turbulent environments.

The Aspen Seminar will be offered nine times in 2008 on our campuses in Aspen, Colorado and Aspen Wye River facility on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay in Queenstown, Maryland. Seminars begin with a reception and dinner on the first evening, and conclude with lunch on the last day.

To apply contact Charlene Costello at 410.820.5374, or charlene.costello@aspeninstitute.org.